And in a pair of other key suburban congressional contests, North Shore Republican Rep. Robert Dold raised more than Democratic candidate Brad Schneider, while fundraising remained close between Republican Rep. Judy Biggert of Hinsdale and former Democratic Rep. Bill Foster.

Congressional campaigns filed paperwork showing how much they raised, who they raised it from and what they spent it on covering July through September. The reports provide the public with a snapshot of candidates’ campaign finances heading into the home stretch before the Nov. 6 election.

Nationally, Democrats are trying to retake the House with a net gain of 25 seats. In Illinois, the party hopes to pick up four or five seats thanks to a Democrat-drawn map. There are six staunchly contested races, three Downstate and three in the suburbs.

In the 8th Congressional District, Duckworth reported taking in about $1.5 million in the third quarter, but spent more than that. After going through $1.54 million in, Duckworth had $756,000 left to start the month.

Walsh received $251,295 in contributions during the summer and spent $385,142, leaving himwith $592,093. The campaign reported another $44,382 in debts.

What the candidates raise, however, is expected to be dwarfed by the millions of dollars in TV attack ads being spent by the national political parties and outside interest groups.

The race that pits Duckworth, a former state and federal veterans affairs official from Hoffman Estates against Walsh, a tea party-backed freshman from McHenry who narrowly won election two years ago, has been replete with attack ads and rowdy debates.

The deadline for filing the reports was late Monday, but by that time Duckworth’s campaign had only filed for the month of September. On Tuesday morning, the campaign amended the report to encompass the entire quarter.

In the 10th Congressional District, Dold took in just over $1 million in the third quarter. The freshman Republican from Kenilworth spent about $835,000 and finished the quarter with $2.3 million.

Democrat Schneider, of Deerfield, pulled in about $782,000. He spent just over $1 million and had about $268,000 remaining.

In the 11th Congressional District, Democratic challenger Foster once again narrowly edged out seven-term Republican incumbent Biggert in fundraising.

Foster raised $641,583 for the quarter compared to $622,191 for Biggert. That marks the sixth straight quarter Foster has reeled in more cash than Biggert, although in nearly every case it has been by just $20,000 or less.

Biggert, however, continues to hold the advantage in cash on hand, thanks to the fact that she finished her 2010 re-election bid with nearly $400,000 in the bank.

As of Sept. 30, Biggert had $1.77 million in her campaign war chest compared to Foster's $1.67 million. Biggert also spent more money in the most recent quarter — $389,000 to Foster's $240,000 in expenditures.